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Filtered search: single min-heap search buffer (experiment) - #457

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feature/filtered-search-single-min-heap
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yuejiaointel wants to merge 12 commits into
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feature/filtered-search-single-min-heap

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@yuejiaointel

@yuejiaointel yuejiaointel commented Oct 26, 2026 •

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What this changes

  • Experiment: during filtered dynamic search, MutableBuffer keeps all entries in one min-heap (best entry on top) instead of the sorted list. Differs from Filtered search: single max-heap search buffer (experiment) #454 only in heap order (Filtered search: single max-heap search buffer (experiment) #454 uses a max-heap).
  • The filter is checked inside the buffer: it is called only for a neighbor that is not a duplicate and is better than the worst kept result. A neighbor that fails it stays in the buffer so the search still walks through it, but it is never returned.
  • Heap mode is on only when a filter is passed. Unfiltered search, the static index, greedy_search, and the batch iterator are unchanged. ValidBuilder is unchanged.
  • cleanup() sorts once at the end; top-up and copy-out are unchanged.

Difference from today's search buffer (sorted list)

  • Today MutableBuffer keeps one sorted array: each insert is a binary search plus a shift. The next node to visit is a pointer to the best unvisited entry, the worst kept entry is the last valid one, and a duplicate is found by scanning the entries with an equal distance.
  • This PR keeps one min-heap: insert is a heap push, the next node to visit is found by scanning for the best unvisited entry (cached until the next insert), the worst kept entry is found by scanning, and a duplicate is found by scanning the heap.

Files

Same four files as #454; only the heap order in MutableBuffer differs.

Tests

Existing tests.

Results

Not benchmarked yet for this version.

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

Reuse the MutableBuffer valid/invalid mechanism: a FilteredValidBuilder marks an
entry invalid if it is deleted or the predicate rejects its external id. New
MutableVamanaIndex::search overload taking a predicate, padding rows with
id -1 / +inf and returning per-query found counts. Supplement path checks the
predicate before computing the distance. Orchestrator virtual appended last.
Replace the separate filtered search overload with two optional trailing
arguments on MutableVamanaIndex::search (an id predicate and a per-query
result count). Without a predicate the existing code path runs unchanged.
check_and_supplement_search_buffer gets an optional predicate that is
checked before the distance is computed. The filter predicate type is now
a type-erased std::function, so FilteredValidBuilder is no longer a
template. The orchestrator keeps one appended virtual that forwards to the
index search.
The optional filter on MutableVamanaIndex::search now only chooses which
builder the existing greedy search closure uses; both cases call the same
per_thread_batch_search. FilteredValidBuilder derives from ValidBuilder.
The buffer top-up in single_search applies the filter when the search
closure carries one. The per-query result count out-parameter is removed
(callers count non-padding ids).

per_thread_batch_search now pads result rows with fewer than k entries
(id size_t(-1), distance +inf) instead of reading past the end of the
search buffer, and the post-search id translation skips the padding.
Give ValidBuilder an optional predicate and pass it down through
internal_search_builder, greedy_search_closure and search() as optional
arguments, instead of a separate builder and search path. Filtered-only
checks: the supplement fallback skips failing ids, copy-out pads short rows
with id -1 and the worst score, translation skips padded ids.
The orchestrator reports filtered search as unsupported for indexes whose
search has no filter argument (the concurrent index), instead of failing to
compile. In the filtered test, drop the unfiltered-padding section (padding is
filtered-only) and add an inner-product case checking padding uses -inf.
Experiment: with a filter, MutableBuffer takes the next entry to visit
from one min-heap (best on top) and stores the best valid entries in
its existing vector, unsorted, tracking the worst one. greedy_search is
unchanged; cleanup() sorts the results once at the end.
ValidBuilder can be given the search buffer. With a filter, it first
asks the buffer whether the entry would be dropped anyway (can_skip)
and, if so, returns it as invalid without looking up the external id or
calling the filter. Results are unchanged.
The filter skip in ValidBuilder asks can_skip; in heap mode the worst
kept entry is not back().
The existing [filtered] dynamic index test drives heap mode end to end.
@yuejiaointel

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Closing: experiment concluded; the work continues in #456.

…he buffer

ValidBuilder is back to the main behaviour (deleted check only); the added filtered-search tests are removed.

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